KC transit agency appeals to state, too
Facing a budget gap and service cuts of its own, the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority today has asked the state of Missouri for $14 million.
Last week, the Metro transit agency sent a similar request to the Missouri House Budget Chairman Allen Icet, R-Wildwood. Metro is seeking an emergency $35 million appropriation to restore some of its lost bus, Call-A-Ride and MetroLink service for about a year.
Even if it gets the money, Metro couldn’t restore some of the routes it cut this week until June or July.
“It is both ironic and tragic that at a time when public transit ridership has been soaring and at a time when working families are seeking cost effective alternatives to automobile ownership, the state’s two largest metropolitan areas are facing a financial crisis in providing reliable, efficient public transit options,” KCATA General Manager Mark Huffer wrote in a letter.
The Kansas City transit agency faces a $9 million shortfall for the year that begins May 1 because of sagging sales tax allocations from the city of Kansas City, Mo. Local transit service will be reduced by about 10 percent beginning on June 28.
In a typical year, there wouldn’t be much the state could do, Icet said. But there’s a chance that some federal stimulus money could help restore some lost buses. In response to a reporter’s question about Metro’s request, Icet said there’s a chance some funding could be made available.
But it’s early in the budget process and the bill must go through both houses, Icet said.
What is wrong with Missouri? Why are we always last or the worst? Is it lack of leadership, corruption, what’s going on?
Some have said Metro is and has been miss-managed. That is just not so. His it made mistakes, tell a company who hasn’t. People keep talking about the new Shrewsbury line in a negitive light, but don’t know the facts. They seem to be anti-Metro, so to heck with what is true or not. Case in point Tom Sullivan. I heard him again on KMOX, and again he can’t back up his statements. It didn’t help that the host did not challenge him either. I have lived in many metro areas, and although St. Louis does not stand up to cities like Boston, Chicago, New York, or Portland (Or), they have one thing St. Louis does not, State support. Each of these cities listed above have alot more money to work with then St. Louis. If St. Louis wants quality mass-transit, it needs to demand it. Demand it to the those who can make it happen, their elected representitives. Where were St. Louis’ before? They only seemed to care after, when people raised Cain when they herad they were going to lose service. They are also the ones who control Metro via the board. Metro can do nothing on their own. They have no taxing authority either. So St. Louis, rather then blog here about things you have no clue about, do the research, get mad that those who really let you down and do something about it. If you want quality mass-transit, you have to say so, even if it means someone has to be voted out for someone who will do what the public wants their representitves to do.
Metro has had hundreds of reports of buses being over crowded. The #98 numbers do not reflect a bus as being empty while in service. You must be seeing out of service buses. Of course you couldn’t know that one way or another but why not report it as a fact anyway. Metro was on track to have 60 million boardings this year. You can’t do that with empty buses.